Ivan Perisic Reveals How Incredibly Close He Came To Joining Manchester United

Ivan Perisic has been talking about how close he came to signing for Manchester United but loyalty to Inter kept him at the club.

The Croatian winger has been linked with United for some time and his performances during the World Cup when Croatia reached the Final only served to add to his value.

Jose Mourinho is a known admirer of the Inter star and he may well be encouraged by the comments of Perisic to Italian journalist Alessandro Rimi today.

"I wanted Manchester United and I was about to accept," revealed the player. "But I chose to stay because of Spalletti's perseverance in wanting to play an important role, which is fundamental in football. In the future I would like to play in other countries I hope the Nerazzurri fans understand."

All eyes were on the 29-year-old when Inter visited Wembley during the week to face Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley in the Champions League. And though Spurs were the winners that night, all the questions to Perisic were about his future plans.

Perisic said: "I have always said that (playing in the Premier League) is my dream. In football everything is possible, we will see in the future. Now, I'm focusing on Inter."

Incoming Inter director Beppe Marotta has hinted he would be willing to let Perisic leave for around £50million. Marotta wants to revamp the Inter squad in the summer and has made no secret of his desire to bring Paul Pogba back to the Serie A next year.